Chapter 142
Chapter 142
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 142
Chapter Title: Star Fall (27)
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****
Deep in the Blue Line Mountains, a valley teeming with high-ranking spirits and undead.
An elf woman perched on a tree branch was holding an awkward conversation with a short human woman.
“So, to confirm, your demands are that our human group reveals our identities, disarms, and waits here until sunrise tomorrow morning. That’s it, right?”
“For now. This place, Carne... um, the village of exiled elves in your terms. As a ranger, my authority here is limited to protecting the village. If you want to achieve your goals, you’ll need to fulfill my demands first, then enter the village and speak with the elder directly.”
Idrasil found the whole situation utterly bewildering. The humans were nothing like she’d imagined, and the negotiation was unfolding in ways she’d never anticipated.
The man over there, subdued by her comrades and listening to the human woman relay messages. The old human tied up with ropes and dangling from a tree, singing some bizarre song. They were all just... strange.
“...! ....! ...? ....!”
“Yes, Ariel. Humans really are... creepy and bizarre. Is this the kind of ‘terrible thing’ the elders warned about?”
Azzak!
Idrasil closed her eyes, stroking her spirit’s arms to soothe the goosebumps prickling across its body.
She just wished these humans would leave soon. It didn’t seem like she’d be able to sever the tree roots until they did.
****
Meanwhile, Lucilla, who’d been darting back and forth between Professor and Idrasil, was equally confused.
‘This isn’t right. This isn’t the hero party I imagined at all!’
Lucilla Aedran. To put it boldly, she was a genius. At least, that’s what she thought of herself.
Ever since she’d first joined a trading caravan at seven and grasped the concept of commerce, she’d never botched a single deal. Sure, she’d taken losses and been betrayed, her goods stripped away, but by the time she reached the Gold Gazer Merchant Guild building in Teldrat, her wagons were always brimming with silver coins, as if nothing had happened.
That’s why the moment the hero mentioned ‘the village of exiled elves,’ she’d decided to join the group. Elves—an extremely insular race that wouldn’t even trade unless you were a wind mage.
She had no idea how the hero had located this remote village, far from even the known elven forests, but he was a holy knight of the church, so he must have his ways. She’d tagged along.
The scent of profit was thick in the air. Like the time she’d found Roman beaten to a pulp and stuffed in the guild warehouse.
But this? What the hell was this?
“Ah, Lucilla! What’re they saying over there?”
“Ugh... How long are you gonna keep this up? Just go talk to her yourself!”
“Heh heh, sorry. Not quite yet.”
The so-called hero of the Church of Luminance turned out to be a half-cripple who was useless without his mute, a monster who wouldn’t die even with an arrow through his skull, and—get this—a ‘mage,’ the number one trading blacklist for every merchant guild! A band of psychos rejecting all common sense—mages!
‘I invested in trash like this? Mages are the [Unpredictable] red-flagged goods every merchant avoids!’
And the result of that bad investment was right in front of her.
“Ooooooh! She calls to me! She calls to me! My illusory lover, present everywhere and nowhere! Let me go, lads! Please!”
“Don’t splash water, Ottoman! We heard the elf say she’ll charge if you lunge again!”
“For heaven’s sake, have some dignity, man! You’re old enough to know better!”
“Aldrich. As a soul mage, can’t you see? This old fool’s blue soul is quaking fiercely?”
“That’s why I can’t even swallow my food! There’s a limit to dramatics... Ugh! Calm down, I said!”
“Release me—!!!”
The scholarly, dignified old mage had lost his mind to late-life infatuation and turned into a ‘typical mage.’
“Hoooh. Disarm and wait a day, huh? I see.”
And the Church of Luminance’s hero? Not content with being tightly bound in thick ropes, he was buried in the ground with just his head sticking out, negotiating with the elf through her.
“Failure... At this rate, I won’t even break even... Me, failing like this...”
“Failure? What failure?”
“None of your business!”
Lucilla shrieked and plopped down on a wagon.
“Ooooooh! Me! Release me! At last, the sea! My sea, right before my eyyyyyes—!”
Watching the mage wriggle on the tree against the sunset backdrop made her eyes well up.
‘Aaaah, just recover the principal somehow. As long as I get out of here in one piece.’
It was a lonely evening, aching for the kind, reliable folk back at the guild.
****
Unlike the bewildered Idrasil and Lucilla, Professor—who’d thrown both women into confusion—was remarkably calm.
“Faced with a situation where real dialogue is possible, and all they do is stall for time... They must have other threats tying up their forces. Or rather, the ‘until sunrise’ deadline suggests their troops are away from the village temporarily. The village isn’t in as good shape as I thought.”
It was unexpected. The elf’s demands, relayed by Lucilla.
They’d started off hostile, and anyone could see they were decked out in church gear. He’d braced for encirclement and surveillance, or being sealed with spirit magic. But just... wait?
“They’re not being rough. Isn’t that good?”
Professor shook his head at Lucilla’s question.
“With just five of us, they wouldn’t act this passively. The stronger a being is, the bolder it gets; the weaker, the more timid. These folks living at the heart of the Blue Line Mountains can’t be weak, so their passivity means something else. Fighting five outsiders could hurt the village enough to matter—either it’s precarious, busy, or both. Either way, bad news for us needing to borrow manpower from there.”
“You figured that out... just from the elf’s demands?”
“Speculation. High probability. They’re showing their hand too much. Coming out alone to say ‘wait one day.’ She’s not that old, either—no talk of human-hate on sight. Probably born in this village?”
As he replied, spitting out a bug crawling toward his mouth, Lucilla—who’d crouched to meet his gaze—twisted into an indescribable expression.
“Unpredict... able...”
“Huh?”
“Mage, monster, and now strategist... How am I supposed to handle merchandise like this...”
“???”
Lucilla had been looking horrified since earlier, muttering something nonsensical, but with the chaos, Professor shrugged it off and summarized his thoughts for her to relay.
“Anyway, key is conveying we mean no harm. Tell her we accept the terms, but note we’re stepping back first—remember that. We raced through the Ley Line across the mountains; we’re exhausted. We could’ve torn the barrier with the strength we used to get here and stolen empty village beds to rest. We’re holding back for peaceful trade.”
That should do it. First priority: look harmless to the elves. But not like pushovers who’d follow orders blindly. For now, projecting harmless-yet-powerful was enough.
Hm, I’m in my right mind now. Better than usual, even? Distance from the spirit helping?
“Water spirit... Never saw that coming.”
He’d gamed out scenarios for meeting elves, but not this.
[Beauty trap! And not even a person or demi-human—a spirit, closer to a natural force! Falling for that, shell? As a human, aren’t you failing at everything?]
‘Shut up.’
[No, seriously! I was shocked too, but it didn’t touch your mind or mine. You held your consciousness without me intervening. So the water blob hasn’t reached mind-affecting stage. Not physical hype like blood armor, either. How to describe it? Fulfillment? Achievement?]
Good news at least. No sudden consciousness spawn like first meeting Hyde. No coercion. No pleasure frenzy. Just... heart floating lightly? Like addictive-drug high, but no addiction or crash?
[That’s scarier, right? Remember that fable? Wind and sun betting on stripping the traveler’s cloak. You weren’t just stripped—you’d have peeled off your skin too.]
‘Still better than Ottoman. If I were rank 5, I’d be like that.’
[Ugh. I don’t envy mages anymore. Not learning.]
Hyde waving massive black arms in his mind—he must’ve looked pathetic.
Finally pulling away from the spirit with party and Hyde’s help, he researched mage-spirit dynamics.
- Speed Wagon : Gonna bill you.
- Professor : Thanks.
Simpler than expected.
Mages are drawn to spirits of their element.
Mages who think they know their element better than anyone. They dive into it near-autistically. To them, spirits are ideal incarnate.
Why do water mages call spirits ‘water lovers,’ fire mages ‘flame suitors’? They believe it. Metaphor for satisfaction researching alone, no real spouse needed.
Spirits: purest element energy gaining will beyond natural form. To mages, the lifelong ideal.
So mages lose it around matching spirits.
Spirit mages? Despise mages intensely. Precisely, spirits hate mages.
Spirit mages empathize with spirits. Feel what they feel, mutually.
Victim today: ‘Ariel (water spirit. Female. 60 years).’
Water spirits ignore human touch or gaze. ‘Female’ from empathy, but essence is water. Dipping hand in river doesn’t bother it.
But a water mage? Lifelong water-obsessed weirdo changes it. Same dip, but mage’s fingertips touch water’s essence his way.
Like: Walking, feel lecherous stare. Turn—lunatic with dozens of pro cameras, X-ray, full-body 3D scanners, drooling, scanning you frantically top to bottom.
Meeting a stranger knowing your secrets intimately, updating real-time.
Spirits hate non-spirit mages’ pervy scrutiny, rejecting natural order with ‘enlightenment’ dominance. Transmitted to spirit mage.
To spirit mages, mages are...
- Speed Wagon : Highly skilled pro pervert stalker. Roughly.
- Professor : Lol.
- Soy Sauce Gaybar : Scary scary....
- Highway Nacho Man : Turning bullet-dodging macho Professor into water stalker. GG’s world #1 psycho factory power....
- BDSM3기공채합격자대표 : No.... Our hero, Dome’s savior Professor couldn’t look this ridiculous! BDSM leader with mighty charisma leading us couldn’t be a water perv! Nooooo!!!
- Jokasss : Alas. Red pill too much for you? Pity, fine young man ruined.
- Gunpowder and Blood : Truth always brings pain, boy.
“Ugh, damn game. No mind effect on me, so conditional reflex system? Mage penalty? Pure in-game influence?”
- Speed Wagon : Nobody knows. No mages, low odds of meeting spirit mage, let alone same element. You like water IRL too?
- Professor : Ugh.
- Speed Wagon : Fr? No spirits out here, but you’re overlinked to game char. Ease up. Not just death injections—eat real food.
- Professor : Got it.
- Speed Wagon : Check PMs outside.
Sigh escaped. Rank 2 cushioned it; Ottoman, hooded like death row and tree-hung, still serenaded weirdly. Higher water mana affinity, stronger pull.
Knew how to handle next time. Real-life impact... needs thought.
Time to wrap here. Professor eyed Notum guarding his buried self.
“Will Ottoman be sane by morning?”
[Release at dawn, he’ll crawl to elf village begging on all fours. Bet left index finger.]
“Grok. Would sell us out if enemy.”
“I’m fine now? Give him time...”
Notum shook head firmly, pointing at Borca and Ottoman.
“Kraaak! Ottoman! Stay still! Please!”
“Release me, you ignoramus! Spirit! Advance me to next stage...!”
Ottoman, water-wrapped, propelling toward elf; Borca, soaked, straining taut ropes.
“Grok.”
“Yeah. I get it.”
Ottoman’s out tomorrow when elves return.
“Hey, Borca! Church rope won’t snap easy! Just hang him and sleep!”
“F-For old human, too harsh? Untie for sleep at least...”
“Harsh? He’d birth triplets now! Exhaustion’ll calm him! Tie to tree and crash.”
Demands meant busy morning, body and mind. All tired—need rest.
Me too.
Ding-!
[Camp: Blue Line Mountains (campfire/hideout/companions). Log out?]
“Yes.”
Eyes closed; blinding light filled retinas.
****
Pssshk-
Grrrrind!
Familiar login rig hiss. Gray cement walls. Musty, nostalgic shelter smell. Post-exit excitement settled calmly.
“Ughhh! Stiff! Off duty, off—”
Creak- Clunk!
“Huh?”
Stretched thoughtlessly; something snagged left hand, metal crumpling.
Clang tink-!
Login lid. Fallen powerless, caught on stretching left hand.
Crack.
Raised left: hard shell plating felt under fingertips, forgotten awhile.
“...Goddamn it.”
First outside in ages, and it started ominous.
****